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Oil painting of Minky's Hobby & Sports Store at 3330-32 West Roosevelt Road, Chicago.
Sent to me by Shim's Granddaughter, Denise Kase-Nabat. |
Shim was the business owner, Minky took care of new bicycle assembly and mechanical repairs, and Charley Nimerov assisted Shim in the sales and management of the Roosevelt Road store.
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| Minky's Hobby & Sports Store, 3330-32 West Roosevelt Road, Chicago, Illinois |
You could rent a bicycle for 25¢ per day from Minky's.
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| Left to right: Unknown, Minky, Shim, and brother Charley (who helped Minky run the Roosevelt Road store). |
Shim advertised to purchase stamps collections.
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| Chicago Tribune, January 16, 1944. |
Shim opened a second Minky's Bicycles & Toy Store at 2840 West Devon Avenue around 1954.
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| Minky's Bicycles, 2840 West Devon Avenue, Chicago, Illinois |
My sister and I bought our Matchbox cars from the Devon Avenue store, which Shim always had the newest models in stock, and would order any available Matchbox car models for customers. Minky's store had a large variety of kid pranks, i.e. whoopie-cushions, fake vomit, hand-buzzards, etc., and sold Spalding "Pinkie" high-bounce balls mostly used to play the game called "Pinners."
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| Chicago Tribune Ad, February 24, 1958. |
Bicycles were shipped in boxes and assembled at the dealerships. Many bike shops around the country had their own head badges and would replace the manufacturer's head badges with their own.
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| Chicago Tribune Ad, May 29, 1958. |
Minky's on Roosevelt Road was burned to the ground during the Chicago riots in 1968. On April 5, 1968, violence sparked because of Martin Luther King, Jr.'s assassination on the West side of Chicago, gradually expanding to consume a 28-block stretch of West Madison Street and leading to additional fire damage on Roosevelt Road. The riot was finally contained on April 7, 1968.
According to the picture, the guy I always saw there and thought was Minky was Shim. Who knew?
ReplyDeleteI also knew him as minky and for a short time worked for him behind the counter and in the store helping customers
DeleteHello,
ReplyDeleteMy name is Barry Gray. I'd like to know If I can get permission to use some of the information and photos about Minky's in a book I'm working on about Schwinn dealerships and the head badges they put on Schwinn bicycle?
As long as this blog (https://drloihjournal.blogspot.com/p/index.html) gets proper credit, Barry Gary. Please forward the link to your live site to: LivingHistoryOfIllinois@yahoo.com
DeletePassed this store most of my young life! I would look inside on our way to Consumer Shades and Blinds on St. Louis where my mom worked with Mr and Mrs Edelberg. I loved Roosevelt Rd. So much to see! I am now almost 75 years old! Great memories!
ReplyDeleteMy name is Steven Nimerov Minky. Nimerov was my father. David was my younger brother. My younger brother, David never lied about my father. Minky owning Minky's bicycles. It wasn't a lie because he truly believed it all his life. My father Minky was my younger brother. David Hero, and he only talked about my father's ownership. Because that's what he believed
ReplyDeleteThis schmuck Neel Gaill Has, hate for my younger brother.
Who is no longer alive
The author of this article says he has proof that my Uncle Seymore, who owned Minky's shop, served in the military. No, that's a lie talk about stolen valor. He couldn't be more hypocritical. I loved my Uncle Seymour*** He treated me like his own son. But the facts are the facts. My father Minky enlisted in the Air Force. So is 4 brothers wouldn't have to serve because he didn't feel they would make it out. Alive but he was the tough guy my father minky
To David Nimerov:
ReplyDeleteFor years, you have—again, in my view—deliberately misrepresented your father as the owner of Minky’s Bicycle Shops. The article has brought countless former customers out of the woodwork, and their accounts overwhelmingly contradict your narrative.
The volume of comments describing bicycle thefts in West Ridge and the surrounding Chicago neighborhoods is staggering. Based on what people have publicly shared, the pattern is impossible to ignore. Many readers have pointed directly at you, David, as the individual involved in these activities.
The used‑bike market was extremely profitable—especially when the bikes cost nothing to acquire. And now, through your own statements, you’ve opened the door to a flood of allegations about conduct people claim to have witnessed firsthand.
There are simply too many consistent stories for these accounts to be dismissed.
One father wrote:
“I engraved my son’s full name on the inside of the chain cover. When I saw the Apple Krate at Minky’s, the name was still there. I showed the proof and walked out with my son’s bicycle.”
These testimonies speak for themselves.